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The review of the third game day of DPC 2023: WEU Upper Division Tour 3 continues with a betting tee on Team Liquid vs D1 Hustlers. The match, at first glance is not heresy because we are expecting a showdown, but The International heresy in this one is still inherent.
First of all The International is interesting to see what the D1 Hustlers are all about. We saw them in the second division last round, but they have yet to face the world's top teams.
Team Liquid, on the other hand, are already at The International 2023, but it's a wonder whether they can hold on to their top spot for a third straight round. It's doubtful so far, but the league has only just begun.
We will see how the match will end, whether D1 Hustlers can repeat the success of Ooredoo Thunders from last season and who in the end will be the winner of the match.
Here we go.
Team Liquid form
In a match where Liquid are present, it is rare for them to play second best. This match is no exception.
Team Liquid will play as the favourite with a critical margin. The odds on Liquid's victory are estimated at a figure of 1.1.
It's silly to argue with the figure, because Liquid are marking the top 1 internationals, not to mention the domestic league. Here, they have proved everything in the past seasons.
In the first DPC cycle, Liquid finished in the top 1 without losing a single match. A bit unlucky at The Lima Major 2023, where the team lost their Boxi four at the top-3 stage, which eventually led them to a second-place finish at their debut Major of the season.
The second round of DPC 2023 was virtually identical, with Liquid again in the top 1, but this time with one game given away. At The Berlin Major 2023, the second Major tournament of the season, again top-2.
There was also a TOP-2 at DreamLeague S19. Some kind of curse, no otherwise.
- Team Liqudi line-up: miCKe, Nisha, Zai, Boxi, Insania.
DPC Liquid's first match of the third round was played with a substitute. Then GH played for the team and Liquid lost at Entity with a score of 0-2.
However, in the match against Secret, they already played in full roster and the result wasn't long in coming. With a 2-0 win, Liquid found themselves in the middle of the table.
The most popular heroes of Team Liquid
The team took Chen (75% win rate) four times. The Enchantress and Disruptor have a perfect win rate with 3 appearances. The Pangolier, Underlord and Shadow Fiend are a bit worse, winning 2 matches out of 3.
The successful characters include Necrophos, Beastmaster, Undying, Monkey King, Rubick, Sven and Ember. All of them appeared in spades 2 times each and won both matches.
No doubt Liquid are a top team with great players and knowledge, however they have a major weakness. "Liquid are running out of steam due to their insane schedule and therefore can and do make mistakes, which their rivals should take advantage of.
D1 Hustlers uniform
Let's move on to a breakdown of the D1 Hustlers' playing form. In this encounter, they will appear in the status of the outsider.
The odds of a D1 Hustlers win in this match are estimated at odds around 6. A logical figure, given the D1 Hustlers' background.
Frankly, the D1 Huslters essentially have none. Against Team Liquid, there is none at all.
The only achievement of the D1 Hustlers for the entire season is reaching the first division. Sounds so-so of course, but still DPC 2023: Tour 2 played Secret, for example.
The Hustlers managed to take the top 2, thereby reaching the first division. At DPC 2023: WEU Tour II Lower Division, the team took the top-2 by a score of 5-2, with Secret they beat, most interestingly.
- D1 Hustlers: Shad, Adzantick, Davai Lama, Thiolicor, Xakoda .
However, D1 Hustlers have clearly impressed the top clubs with their play in the second division. For example, the team had to change carry, as former first position player Yuma was bought out by Nigma Galaxy.
Apparently, there is potential. In addition, there is some experience in major tournaments, but very limited: only Xakoda and Thiolicor previously played for top clubs such as Vp (Xakoda as VP took top-8 Arlington Major) and Hokori (Thiolicor as Hokori made it to top-12 The International 2022).
Most popular D1 Hustlers
A couple of the most picked D2 Hustlers are Timbersaw and Rubick (4 games, 75% win rate). Next are Disruptor, Ember Spirit with 3 games and 2 wins each.
In addition, they've also played Bounty Hunter, Clockwerk, Mirana, and Outworld Destroyer, each with 2 wins in 2 games.
Not a lot of experience, but you shouldn't write off the D1 Hustlers too early. We can recall the experience of Ooredoo Thunders from last season, which proves that the teams emerging from the second division are capable of surprising.
History of head-to-head encounters
Liquid and D1 Hustlers have not played each other in official matches before.
The outcome of the match
I expect no surprises in this matchup. In spite of the fact Liquid entered The International 2023, they are not the kind of team that will play in straightforward passing matches and the match against D1 Hustlers is exactly like that.
Bottom line: 2-0 in favour of Team Liquid.
